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Nike and AKQA unveil the world's first LED Basketball Court in Shanghai

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The world of professional Basketball and 21st century sports technology in general took a dramatic leap into the future recently with the unveiling of the world's first interactive, touch-sensitive LCD basketball court in Shanghai, China. The court has been called the “House of Mamba” in honour of Kobe Bryant (whose nickname is the “Black Mamba”), who helped open the court in collaboration with Nike and AKQA during a promotional trip to the city. The court could completely change how athletes will train in the future, and already includes drills based on how Bryant himself trains, with players able to follow his movements step for step.

The court has been called the “House of Mamba” in honour of Kobe Bryant, who helped open the court in collaboration with Nike and AKQA during a promotional trip to the city

The court (which you can see in action for yourself below) is a simply stunning achievement, almost bridging the gap between sports and video games. The innovative court is made up of incredibly high-tech motion sensors, which cover every square inch of the court and can individually track each players movements. The LCD lights guide or track the players, showing them potential moves via reactive visualisation. The one-of-a-kind court could also be potentially used for less conventional purposes, perhaps showing elaborate graphics or videos, which can be used for a variety of events.

Introducing the Nike RISE 'House of Mamba' LED court

The court will be used by Nike for their upcoming “Rise” campaign; a competition running throughout the summer, featuring some of China's best young players. The campaign focuses on “The importance of believing in yourself and chasing your dreams.” The competition began with thousands of aspiring 'ballers' submitting 30-second videos of themselves performing on the court. These videos were cut down to 30 finalists who will compete in the campaign. As part of the campaign, which is also to be turned into an online reality show, three of the young Chinese players will take part in the RISE tour, which will take them to the Nike World basketball Festival in Barcelona next month.

The legendary LA Lakers shooting guard was blown away by his first experience on the court, saying that he didn't even know this kind of technology was possible!

The Black Mamba himself recently took to the court, showing off some nifty tips and tricks to the assorted finalists and treating them to some personal one-on-one games. The legendary LA Lakers shooting guard was blown away by his first experience on the court, saying that he didn't even know this kind of technology was possible! “It's amazing what can be done nowadays,” he said, and after spending some time with the court, he believes that “The potential and possibilities for the floor are endless.” Whilst it might be hard to imagine the NBA adopting the technology during its games, the potential for training purposes is obvious, though it is unclear exactly how much the court cost (A lot one would imagine).

Official AKQA Website

Official Nike Website

Benjamin Hiorns is a freelance writer and musician from Kidderminster in the UK, who is quite nifty with a basketball himself. On NBA Jam.

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